


Marks

by AniZH



Category: Victorious
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-22
Updated: 2017-05-22
Packaged: 2018-11-03 17:55:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10972422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AniZH/pseuds/AniZH
Summary: Sometimes, Beck and Jade like it a little rough in bed. When Tori notices the marks left by handcuffs on Jade’s wrists, she worries though and thinks of a brutal arrest or abuse of some sort. And of course wants to help Jade.





	Marks

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, people!  
> I've written this almost a year ago, I think. I've rewritten it slightly over time, but only considered recently to actually share it. It's just that kind of story I usually keep to myself and only write down to get out of my head. But maybe, there are people out there that would enjoy this, too. I changed a few small things to feel able to share it.  
> This one shot is very different from what I usually write and actually shows part of the sex life of Beck and Jade how it could be. It could very well happen you feel second-hand embarrassment reading this. Yes, this is a warning. (And really, please, don't read this, if you don't like this sort of thing at all. I don't want to make you feel uncomfortable in any way or form.)  
> Yeah, like always, I of course like to hear what you think, if you decide to read this.  
> Enyoy!

Tori is sure she isn’t supposed to see, but she does.  
She sits in her history class and they talk about Martin Luther King Jr, so it’s definitely interesting but their teacher has now been in a monologue for twenty minutes and Tori is about to fall asleep. She hasn’t had too much sleep the previous night, so...  
She sighs silently as she rubs her eyes and then looks around the room to check how everyone else holds up. Well, Chris next to her actually has his eyes closed and possibly even is asleep. She’s definitely not the only one not following all that much.  
She looks further around and finally notices Jade. Jade sems bored but does look at the board on which the teacher just writes again.  
Tori knows she should hurry to copy everything herself because this teacher doesn’t hand out too many papers while she tests them on everything she write on the board.  
But she instead watches Jade, who just now pushes up the wristband, she wears on her right wrist, and then rubs that same wrist with her left hand. Tori doesn’t think too much about it. Jade does take notes in class, better than Tori herself actually, though sometimes a little cryptic and not exactly like they are written onto the board. Maybe she has just written down too much and her wrist hurts slightly from all the writing. But as she lets go of it again, before she pulls the wristband back over it, Tori is sure to see marks. Those kind of marks left by a handcuff.  
Tori draws her eyebrows together. Has she seen right? Is it possible that Jade has worn handcuffs?  
Jade lies her pencil down and now also pulls up the wristband on her left wrist and rubs it and Tori definitely sees the mark there, before she puts it back over it and then quickly gets back to writing down, what the teacher has written on the board.  
Tori knows she also should get back to taking notes, to listening, but she stares at Jade’s wrists instead. What are those marks all about?  
She bites her lip. Jade has been handcuffed. She can’t help but worry.

Tori waits after dinner for Trina to go back up to her room and her mother to go meet up with her friends, before she sits down next to her father on the couch.  
“Dad?” she carefully asks. “You can look up in the system at work, who has been arrested and why, right?”  
“Of course, I can,” her father answers, looking at her waiting, naturally knowing there is more to follow.  
She hesitates for another second but she doesn’t know how else to go about this, so: “Do you think you could look up for me if Jade has been arrested for something?”  
“Your friend?” her father asks surprised.  
Tori answers honestly: “Yeah. I think she might be in trouble.”  
“Has she said anything?”  
No, she surely hasn’t and Tori also knows that Jade wouldn’t just tell her like that. But she worries. She worries that Jade has done something stupid and the police has picked her up for it.  
She shakes her head. “Not exactly but... Can you please just look it up for me?”  
Her father looks at her for a moment, before he puts his hand on her shoulder. “You know I can’t use our recources for private matters, honey.”  
“Please, Dad,” Tori immediately pleads. She has known before that her father wouldn’t do it just like that. Now, she quickly puts on her best puppy dog face, because she knows her father always falls for that. “I’m really worried. Just see if you can find anything on her.”  
Her father looks at her for another moment, sighs slightly and finally says: “What’s her last name again?”  
Tori smiles brightly. It has been easier after all to convince her father to do this for her than she thought. “West. Thank you, Dad.”  
She jumps back up her feet to leave for her room, as her father says though: “I can’t promise you anything, okay? I will look into it but I can’t promise that I will tell you everything I might find.”  
But he will tell her if it’s something important. Or he will look further into it on his own because he knows that it’s one of Tori’s friends. So Tori is fine with that.  
“Of course,” she says and then goes up to her room.

Jade is wearing different wristbands the next day. Some that fit perfectly to her outfit for that day. But she must of course still be hiding those marks and only wear them for that. They can’t have gone away in a day.  
Tori wishes her father would just call her and tell her all about what he possibly already has found out, but she knows he won’t. She can barely concentrate on anything when Jade is close, is distracted all the time by the wristbands.  
Finally, it’s the end of the day. Her teacher for her last class has hold her back to talk to her about her last homework and she just quickly wants to use the restroom before heading home.  
As she walks into the restroom, she sees something she definitely also isn’t supposed to see.  
The restroom is empty except for Jade, who stands in front of the mirror, has her top raised slightly, inspecting her own body in the mirror. Tori can see why. On both her sides, there are small bruises. They aren’t big at all, but there are a few of them and they are green and brown, clearly standing out from her pale skin.  
The second, Jade notices the door having been opened, she drops the shirt again and starts washing her hands, raising her eyebrows at Tori in the mirror, as if nothing has happened at all. Tori wonders if she hopes that Tori hasn’t noticed the bruises. Tori has though.  
But she doesn’t want to make Jade uncomfortable and she needs some time anyway to think about this, to put this together. So, she shoots Jade a smile like she would do most of the times, and then quickly walks into one of the stalls.

She waits for her father at the door that late afternoon. Luckily, he doesn’t come home later today like he otherwise often does.  
“And?” she asks.  
“Hello to you too, Tori,” he says as he passes her, walking inside.  
She shuts the door behind him, following him inside the house, quickly saying: “Yeah, yeah. Hi. Did you find anything on Jade?”  
Her mother is still at work while Trina is at a friend’s house, so Tori can ask her father freely about it. She doesn’t want anyone else involved yet. As she still doesn’t know what this could be about and how private the matter is for Jade.  
Her thoughts have all been about a rough arrest, the bruises on Jade’s sides coming from an officer. But what could Jade have done or what has she been accused of?  
Her father puts down his briefcase on one of the chairs in the kitchen and then also pulls his jacket off and hangs it on the chair, while he answers: “There’s nothing to worry about, honey. I did find a report where she’s mentioned but that’s from years ago and it’s nothing bad.”  
But he did find something on Jade. Well, not from a few days ealier, so Tori still doesn’t know, from where the marks from the handcuffs could be, but... Her curiousity is sparked and it gets the better of her: “What’s that report about?”  
Her father shakes his head. “You know I can’t tell you.”  
She pulls a face and he sighs and puts his hand on her shoulder: “Tori, it’s nothing to worry about. I promise. It has been about some family dispute. I don’t want to hear more questions.”  
Of course, Tori has some more question, but she knows she can’t win the battle when her father says something as decisive as he has just said that last sentence. So she just thanks him, before she goes up to her room again.  
Her thoughts are running wild. A family dispute? And she has bruises all over her body?  
Her mind of course directly jumps to Jade’s father. That cold man that judges so harshly over her. Could it be that he... hits her? That he abuses her? Has someone once called the cops, but noone has acted ever since because Jade also has claimed there’s nothing going on – like abused children do?  
She immediately feels dreadful. Isn’t it also common for abused children to long for the affection and pride of their abuser? Just like Jade has desperately wanted her father to like her play. Not that Tori doesn’t want her parents to like her plays but... still.  
It suddenly all seems to fit, to fall into place.  
But can Jade really get abused with not one of them noticing? They are friends with her for years, even Tori already for two. They must have seen before if it’s really happening, right?  
Or has her father only recently started hurting her like that? Has he beat her up for the first time or something?

She barely sleeps this night and watches Jade the next day in every class they have together. Gosh, has Jade really just gone through some beating and not one of them has noticed? Nothing is changed in her behaviour. Should there be a change? Does no change mean that she has been beaten before after all?  
It makes Tori already sick to imagine Jade having been beaten once, but actually havng been abused over years... Which the police report also implies...  
She only dares to walk up to Jade the next morning. She knows she can’t just pretend to not have seen the marks. She worries about Jade and she does want to help her somehow. She knows her father abuses her after all, if for the first or the thousands times.  
“Good morning,” she tentatively says after she has walked up to her in front of her locker.  
Jade rolls her eyes without looking at her. “Yeah, hey.”  
Tori bites her lip. She definitely wants to talk to Jade about this but... Jade is so private and... well.  
It takes Jade already too long for Tori to decide on her words. She shuts her locker, obviously is finished with it and asks: “What do you want?”  
“I just...” Tori starts, still unsure, then quickly: “If you ever need to talk about anything, I’m here, Jade. Okay?”  
Jade cocks an eyebrow and sarcastically says: “Yeah, you’d always be the first person I would call.”  
And with that, she passes by Tori and leaves her standing there.  
Tori sighs and leans against the wall next to Jade’s locker. Of course, Jade doesn’t take her up on that offer just like that. Maybe, she should tell her that she has seen the marks. But she doesn’t really want to force Jade to talk to her about it. She doesn’t know how Jade would react to that.  
Suddenly, she hears Andre’s voice: “What was that about?”  
He has obviously heard their talk and now has walked up to Tori, looking after Jade for another second, then looking at Tori like she’s a little crazy. He undoubtedly wonders how Tori could even get the idea to offer Jade to talk to her. It’s something you don’t do.  
“I...” Tori says unsurely and... she shouldn’t tell Andre, right? She shouldn’t tell anyone, because Jade doesn’t want to talk about it and it’s Jade’s private life. On the other hand, she feels like she has to talk about it with someone and Andre also is one of Jade’s friends and if Jade truly does get abused, they need to help her.  
“Come with me,” she promptly decides and not a minute later, she and Andre are in the janitor’s closet together and she makes sure there’s noone else in there, not even sleeping in the corners. Then, she already finds herself explaining: “I saw marks from handcuffs on Jade’s wrists. She’s wearing wristbands to hide them. And she has bruises on her sides; a few... dots.” She shrugs slightly as she doesn’t know how to describe it better.  
Andre looks surprised to hear that and needs a second, then: “How do you know, the marks are from handcuffs?”  
That’s so not the issue here. She makes a gesture as if to wave away an annoying fly. “My dad is a cop.” She just knows some stuff.  
Andre nods as as sign that he has forgotten that, but that he can understand it then. But now, he furrows his eyebrows and slowly asks: “So... What do you think has happened?”  
“I don’t know,” Tori says and hesitates for another second, because she knows it’s a big accusation to make, but she does want to talk about it to sort her thoughts, therefore: “Do you think... do you think her father could abuse her?”  
Andre looks at her for a long moment, but doesn’t seem to think she’s crazy or anything. He seems to honestly consider it, which means that she isn’t totally insane for thinking it could be true. Then, he suddenly asks: “Why would she have marks from handcuffs then though?”  
Oh, right. Those marks. She has had them in her mind as well but hasn’t really connected all the dots, really thought through this whole thing, what Jade’s father might do to her exactly. But... “I don’t know. Maybe, he handcuffs her somewhere to keep her from going out or something?” Or to beat her up without her being able to truly defend herself?  
“That sounds far fetched,” Andre says and yes, it does but...  
“What do you think where the marks and bruises are coming from?”  
Andre shrugs. “Maybe, she has had a run-in with the police?”  
She can’t blame him for that suggestion as it has been her first thought as well after all. Without the bruises but she also still assumed it had been the police when she saw them.  
“My dad said he found nothing except a ‘family dispute’ with Jade from years ago.”  
That definitely makes Andre even more attentive. “Family dispute?”  
“Yeah,” Tori says and notices by the change of his expression that he catches up to her worries. She’s glad about it.  
He now tilts his hand, bites his own lip, before he confesses: “Well... I also saw bruises on her sides some time ago.”  
“You did?” Tori asks, feeling a little sick again.  
He nods: “A few months back in our dancing class. We had to do some crazy steps and her top went up a little and I’m sure I saw some dark spots there. I thought they must have been shadows or something, but when you just mentioned seeing dots...” He looks uncomfortable.  
So, Jade’s father hasn’t just beat her up around last weekend, but has hit her before.  
Tori feels her breathing getting difficult, just thinking about it. She asks: “What can we do?”  
Andre shrugs, as helpless as Tori feels. “I don’t know. I don’t think we can do anything if she doesn’t want us to. I mean... She obviously doesn’t even want to talk to you.”  
“We have to do something,” she says though because they do, don’t they? They can’t know about Jade’s father abusing her and not do anything.  
“Well...” Andre says slowly. “She may not talk to us, but she always talks to Beck.” Of course, he’s right there. Brilliant!  
“We can offer him our help!”

That same day, both of them approach Beck during their third short break, when they finally find him alone at his locker while he has spent the previous breaks together with Jade.  
“Beck, can we talk to you?” Tori directly asks him.  
“Sure,” he answers as he closes his locker.  
“In private,” Andre adds, looking after the passing group of classmates.  
Beck furrows his eyebrows and gives back a confused “okay”. Obviously, it’s weird for them to ask him to speak to him in silence.  
They also lead him into the janitor’s closet, because that’s just a great place to talk in private. Tori checks again if noone else is there, then she says: “It’s about Jade.”  
That makes Beck furrow his eyebrows even more, confused and possibly directly a little worried.  
Andre explains: “Tori saw some weird marks. Do you know anything about that?”  
Tori’s sure to see something... freeze in Beck’s face ever so slightly, but he still asks confused: “What marks?”  
“Handcuff marks around her wrists,” Tori answers, watching Beck’s face closely and his face definitely freezes even more, but Tori quickly continues, because that’s not everything: “And bruises on her sides. And my dad told me she’s mentioned in a police report because of a family dispute. Does her father hit her?”  
Now, Beck looks surprised and he promptly answers: “No, he doesn’t. He never would. That police report... The only time, Jade ever ran across the police was back when she pushed her cousin in the basement and locked him in there. Her father called the cops on her, which is why they probably wrote a report and that must be the family dispute your father knows about. But he never would’ve hit her.”  
Well, that would explain a family dispute and Tori’s father must have read the police report and did say to Tori that there was nothing to worry about. This would be nothing to worry about any more. But there’s more to this than that report.  
“What about those marks and bruises?”  
Beck looks at her for a moment, then at Andre, before he finally says: “Guys, don’t worry about Jade, okay? She’s fine. You know I never would let anything bad happen to her.”  
And with that, he actually leaves before Andre or Tori can say anything more.  
Tori doesn’t feel comforted at all. Beck hasn’t explained anything more than the police report after all. She still doesn’t know where the marks and bruises are coming from, who did that to Jade.  
Suddenly, Andre says: “That actually sounded as if he’s the one hitting her.”  
Tori turns to him shocked. He can’t be serious! He still looks after Beck and only slowly lets his eyes wander back to Tori when she says: “That’s ridiculous!”  
Beck is the nicest guy Tori knows. He’s always patient and calm, especially with Jade actually. And even when they fight and he does get loud, she never has experienced him threatening in any way. Beck isn’t one of those men.  
Andre shrugs, unsure. “Think about it: The way he froze when we started with the topic, how he just tried to calm us down without a good explanation...”  
“Beck would never hurt Jade,” Tori says matter-of-factly, because he can’t.  
Andre shrugs another time, now with almost guilt in his eyes: “Beck is my best friend, but honestly: He could have a dark side.”  
Tori looks at him speechless for a long moment, then looks after Beck again. Well... Sometimes, it is the nice guy that abuses his partner at home. Could Beck be that kind of person? The perfect facade with the bad personality? Always just pretending in front of everyone else?  
There’s a sickening feeling inside her stomach. She doesn’t want this to be true, she doesn’t want to believe it, but... what if Andre is right?  
Quietly, she decides: “We should talk to Jade then. Alone.”

Beck meanwhile also feels a little sick to his stomach. He can barely concentrate during his next class.  
When the bell rings, he’s the first out of the room and directly goes to the classroom where he knows Jade has her class at that time. The door is also already open and Beck finds her at the end of the hallway, probably already on her way to her locker.  
“Hey,” he says when he has caught up to her and starts walking next to her.  
Jade only needs to look at him for a second and already knows that something is wrong, as he notices by the way she asks: “What’s up?”  
“Tori and Andre talked to me earlier,” he slowly starts saying, looking around, trying to find a place where they can talk.  
“That’s new,” Jade dryly answers. She doesn’t like it whenever he doesn’t directly come to the point, especially when it’s about something important. She already knows by his face that this is important.  
He finally sees at least a corner further down a hallway where not many people pass by. He pulls Jade with him into the corner, backs himself all the way in, pulls her into his arms in front of him. She instantly puts his arms around his neck and they kiss deeply, starting to make out.  
It’s a good cover and Jade gets that. Their lips barely break apart, before Beck quietly says: “Tori saw the bruises on your wrists and your sides.”  
Jade’s face immediately falls. “What? How could she have seen those on my wrists?”  
And that’s a weird question. “How about those on your sides?”  
Jade rolls her eyes. “Well... I kind of inspected them the day before yesterday in the restroom while I waited for you.”  
His last class the day before yesterday was photography and his teacher there always ends class a few good minutes after the bell. He’s so amazing that everyone actually stays in the room and listens until he finishes up.  
As Beck usually drives Jade to and from school (and they mostly spend their time after school together anyway), Jade always waits up for him after class. He knows she checked her bruises this time as some classmate had bumped into her after her last class and it especially hurt on her bruises. Beck is sure she sent the idiot running after because that’s what she does. And he knows that she inspected her bruises afterwards, as she told him she did. It made him smirk. They always both love to be reminded of those bruises, which is why he knows she hasn’t actually have had a problem with them hurting or anything.  
Jade keeps explaining quietly: “I thought everyone else was home already but Vega walked right in. I didn’t know how much she actually saw. But my wrists?”  
Beck follows the two classmates walking by with his gaze, only then he says slowly: “You do kind of pull the wristbands up regularly and rub your wrists.”  
“Because they hurt,” Jade immediately defends herself, as if Beck has attacked her. She even draws back slightly, but Beck pulls her close again, kisses her before he whispers: “I’m not blaming you. I like seeing you do it, actually. But I guess she could’ve seen it then.”  
He does like seeing it because it’s another reminder of what happened a few days earlier.  
She has only shortly shown a smirk at that statement of his, but naturally they have something else to talk about here: “Great. And she ran off and told Andre and now they both know.”  
Okay, he hasn’t actually gotten to the point yet. Jade thinks they know about how those bruises came to be.  
He slowly says: “Actually, they think your father hits you.”  
“What?” Jade immediately asks, unbelieving.  
“Yeah,” Beck answers. “I of course told them that’s nonsense.”  
“How could they get an idea like that?”  
Jade really seems to be confused about this one. Well... Beck isn’t that much.  
“I don’t think it’s that farfetched,” he honestly says. “If I didn’t know better, I could think so myself.”  
Jade states quietly but with emphasis: “He never hit me.”  
“I know,” Beck nods. “But he looks like someone who could.” He’s cold and judgemental and he doesn’t treat Jade the way she deserves. But yes, Beck does know that he has never abused her in any way.  
Jade seems sceptical. “What about the bruises from the handcuffs?”  
Well... That’s a good question. They do have noticed the bruises around the wrists are from handcuffs. Do they think her father actually handcuffs her?  
“I have no idea what they think about that,” he finally admits.  
Jade slightly turns away from him, looking at some passing students herself, before she looks back at him. “What did you tell them instead?” If he made sure to let them know that her father doesn’t hit her.  
He shrugs slightly. “That they shouldn’t worry. I hope they’ll leave it at that.”  
“There’s not much chance of that happening with Vega,” Jade says grumpily, which Beck thinks is true. “She’s so nosy. You just should have said that my dad indeed hit me. Then, she would think she knows and it would be done.” As if Tori is just curious and wouldn’t care beyond that.  
“You forget that she does like you and would care,” Beck says and then adds a dreadful thought: “And her father is a cop. She would’ve probably directly told him and then we would soon sit at the police station and would have to tell them.”  
“God,” Jade says, obviously imagining that scenario. That’s also something he definitely doesn’t want to ever experience.  
Oh, and there’s another thing, now that he’s thinking about Tori’s father anyway: “He actually told Tori that you were involved in some family dispute, where the police was involved. That’s probably how she got to your father.”  
Jade looks disgusted now. “He must be as nosy as she is. How is that his business? And family dispute... Right.”  
He rubs his hands over her back, still standing so close as if they’re actually making out. “It was the thing with your cousin, right? I also told them about that.” He wants to make sure that that really was her only run-in with the police, which he thinks. And he of course wants her to know that Tori and Andre now know about it, which she may not like as she’s pretty private.  
“Ugh,” Jade just says, actually kisses him again, then thoughtfully adds: “Well, now I also get why Tori told me this morning that I can always come talk to her.”  
What? “You didn’t tell me about that.” If she had, Beck would have been prepared for Tori to also approach him. If she’s worried about Jade and doesn’t get anywhere with her, obviously she would also talk to Beck sooner or later.  
Jade rolls her eyes and sounds slightly annoyed, but doesn’t break apart even a little bit from him. “I didn’t know what it was about. I just thought she was weird again. God.”  
Well, okay. If Tori has just apparently randomly told her to come talk to her whenever... Yes, Jade couldn’t have known it was anything involving Beck and not just Tori being in a weird mood.  
“What will we do now?” he just asks instead.  
He can’t imagine Tori backing off too well. He hopes she does but... well... Andre surely won’t ask again on his own, but Tori is so different.  
“Nothing,” Jade answers after a second of thought. “Hope that she for once can let something go and forget about it. If she talks to me again, I’ll also tell her to piss off.”  
Maybe, Jade’s words will help more than his, especially her attitude. Though they are talking about Tori, who never backs off easily. And he’s still thinking somehow about a scenario where she has involved her father and they are sitting in a police station and have to confess and... well...  
“Maybe, we should tell. Before more people get involved,” he gently says.  
They look at each other for a few seconds and Jade knows exactly what he’s thinking about and finally shrugs: “Ugh. If we have to.”  
Yes, just if they have to. If Tori approaches Jade and Jade also tells her to piss off and she still doesn’t. Then, they should consider telling. If there’s no other way out, before anyone else gets involved.  
And that’s that. He pulls her into another kiss, when the bell already rings for the next class. Well... They haven’t gotten around to actually make out. Maybe, they’ll risk being a little late for class, to actually have some nice time together.

Tori and Andre really want to talk to Jade alone but the thing is... they don’t find Jade anywhere alone all through Thursday and in great parts of Friday. Yes, they have classes with her, in which Beck isn’t, but as soon as break starts, Beck is either in front of the room or Jade and he have casually but quickly found each other somewhere in school, before Tori or Andre are able to tell Jade they need to talk to her alone.  
Beck often walks Jade from class to class and they do try to spend much of their time in school together, so all this isn’t so unusual but Tori can’t help but think that Beck does it on purpose now. As if he knows they want to talk to Jade alone and that he’s concerned they will crack her and they will finally get to know about his other face, about him abusing Jade.  
Tori still doesn’t want to believe it, but suddenly the accusation is in the room and... it is possible after all.  
Andre and she share more and more glances during the classes and breaks, whenever Beck suddenly shows up again or Jade is suddenly gone from their sight. They also aren’t able to catch Jade at her locker Friday morning and Tori thinks about trying to get Jade at home. Though she knows that Beck and Jade also spend much of their free time together, mostly in the RV, where they actually are alone and noone is able to notice how Beck treats Jade.  
She still wants to try getting Jade alone at home but somehow, it gets to be too much during Sikowitz’ class.  
Jade makes an especially mean and cruel comment about a classmate who has just done a scene, and Beck just says her name in a warning tone and she crosses her arms in front of her chest, but doesn’t say another word. This happens. Sometimes, Beck stops her when she’s mean, even by just saying her name. He doesn’t always succeed if she’s on a roll, but there are times where he does so easily like he does now.  
Tori swallows as she imagines what Jade has to expect at home when Beck sounds like this, when he calls her out.  
She can’t take it anymore. She uses the chance after Sikowitz’ class. Their group of friends often hangs back after that because it’s the class they all share, and they can talk without having to rush out.  
Today, Sikowitz is the first out of the room with the rest of the class also quickly following while their group of friends still grab all of their things. And Tori makes it quick, before they are right in the middle of the hallways again, while there are all their classmates around them. “Okay. I want to talk about this.”  
Everyone stops and Cat and Robbie look at her confused while Andre of course knows what this is about. They have just now shared another awkward glance as Beck has put his arm around Jade, as both of them have turned to leave the room.  
They turn back now and Tori can’t read their faces at all, while Jade intertwines her fingers with Beck’s.  
Will Jade ever be able to tell the truth with Beck around, especially this close, if he’s the one doing it? But all of the others are also there, they can protect her, Tori is sure. They just also have to assure Jade of that.  
So, she now just comes out and directly asks: “From where have you gotten the marks around your wrist?”  
Jade doesn’t look surprised about the question. Beck really must have warned her. She does look annoyed and rolls her eyes as she answers: “I was arrested for murdering you for your nosiness and obviously put up a fight.”  
“Which marks?” Cat innocently asks. She and Robbie are still confused.  
Andre quickly explains to them: “Jade has marks around her wrists from handcuffs and bruises on her sides.”  
“We could also make posters with photos, so everybody knows,” Jade spits out sarcastically.  
She doesn’t even glance to Beck to maybe check how she’s supposed to react. Would she if he would be her abuser?  
Beck also doesn’t really pull a face. He seems possibly slightly uncomfortable, but not concerned or cornered or anything alike. Nor angry. Because he’s so sure Jade won’t tell, no matter the pressure?  
Tori addresses Jade again: “We worry about you, Jade. And you can tell us what this is about.” It takes all her courage, but then she adds: “Is Beck abusing you?”  
Jade raises her eyebrows: “What? Is Beck beating me up, alone in the RV?”  
Tori shrugs helplessly and glances to Beck, who looks back stunned and now asks: “How do you get an idea like that?”  
Would he instantly be more defensive if it was him? Well... Beck is a good actor either way. Could he act about this?  
Andre now cuts in again, also seeming uncertain: “The way you reacted when we wanted to talk to you about it.”  
Beck looks as if he doesn’t get it at all. Cat meanwhile also finally raises her voice, using the nickname, that makes Jade looks slightly annoyed again: “Jadey. Tell us if there’s something wrong.”  
Jade rolls her eyes yet again and then suddenly spits out: “God. I can’t believe you guys. You know what? Yes, Beck has done it, but if you would get in which way he did, you wouldn’t keep asking about it. Because he doesn’t abuse me or whatever. He does it with my full consent.”  
Wait. “What?”  
She takes her hand out of Beck’s again, but he keeps his arm around her as she draws up one of her wristbands to show them the marks that are still visible. “He made these while he handcuffed me to his bed as we were having sex and these” – She puts the wristband back on and pulls her top up slightly to show the bruises that don’t look as bad as in Tori’s imagination lately. – “are from when he put clothespins onto my body – while we were having sex. Now, fuck off.”  
She intertwines her fingers with Beck’s again, turns around, pulling him with her, and they leave together.  
The others share an awkward glance, before they follow them out the room in silence. They all get their lunches, also barely saying a word as they seperate to do so, and Tori thinks about Jade’s explanation.  
Well... Of course she knows, some people use handcuffs in bed. And she knows, some also use clothespins though she has only heard about putting them on your breast, not anywhere else. But she could imagine them leaving small bruises like that if you keep them on long enough. Or if you bruise easily, which she knows for a fact Jade does.  
So, Jade has those marks and bruises because she and Beck have rough sex. That also makes Beck’s first reaction pretty understandable, who probably hasn’t counted on Tori having seen those marks and didn’t want to just tell her the truth like that if he could avoid it.  
Tori feels very much embarrassed and she see that the others also feel more than awkward when they meet back up with their lunches and walk into the Asphalt Café together. They all share another set of glances after they see Beck and Jade sitting at their usual table, already eating. For a few seconds, they are all hesitating, but then they walk up to them and also sit down at that table. If Beck and Jade sit there, it’s usually a sign that they won’t insist of staying alone. And in this situation, if their friends won’t sit down with them... this whole thing will probably get even weirder.  
Jade doesn’t even look up, seems totally interested, while Beck speaks up though: “We’re sorry for worrying you. I do feel a little offended that you think I could truly hurt Jade.”  
Jade rolls her eyes, quietly putting in: “You do hurt me but I want it, so...”  
Well, that’s true. Buck has hurt her. He kind of has another face. But not really as he apparently only does it because Jade wants him to, because Jade also likes it. Which is so weird.  
Andre blinks at Jade, then looks back to Beck and genuinely says: “I’m sorry, dude. I got Tori into the idea that you could be the one doing it. It’s just... You did react really weird yesterday.”  
Tori nods and Beck replies, almost jokingly, but also quietly, because nobody but them needs to hear: “It wasn’t like I would just come out and say: Yeah, those are the marks from Jade and me having sex.”  
That’s true. The only thing that has probably finally made Jade say it is because she knew they wouldn’t stop asking. Beck has most likely also told her that Tori has seen those marks after she and Andre asked him about them, just to warn her in case they would approach her again.  
For a moment, it’s silent between all of them while they slowly start eating, then Robbie says: “I never knew those handcuffs leave marks like that. Don’t they have plush around them?”  
That weirdly slightly lightens the mood. Instead of awkwardly, they now look almost interested and amused.  
“They do if you want them to,” Jade easily answers. “But they just give or take control. Handcuffs by itself also hurt and if that’s what you’re going for...”  
Whoah. But yes, of course they go for pain. That’s what also the clothespins are about.  
Beck gently cuts in: “Which we don’t do often as we know it leaves those marks. Just like we don’t use the clothespins often like that. Anyway... That’s obviously more than you ever wanted to know about our sex life – or than we wanted you to know.”  
It is. But it’s fine. The friendship actually easily survives it. Yes, Tori sometimes does think about it in the future. Her mind wanders there sometimes. And sometimes, she also wonders what else the two of them might do in bed.  
Anyway... After that lunch break they never talk about it again, but it doesn’t turn out to be an exetremly embarrassing secret they share, but perfectly fine. And of course, the friends do keep it a secret without having being warned to do so.


End file.
